Author's Note:

Every once in a while, things slow down and you begin to think back on the memories before... Combining that aspect, as well as the question of how a Mafia boss spends his Christmas, I bring you this chapter before we jump into the new year!

Chapter 37: The Coming Feasts

The day starts out with me hanging on the side of my house, or mansion, or whatever. The sky was a calm, almost cloudless space of baby blue. In my hand was a few of the christmas decorations that I was supposed to put up. The winter wind blows, and goosebumps formed all over my skin. "Brr.." I gave out unconsciously. The streets were littered with small patches of snow. I guessed I missed the snowfall earlier, still, it was quite the sight, as snow itself is quite rare here in the City of Venice, especially it being this early in december.

The ringing of the bells I had in the palm of my hand brought me back, and I wondered why I was doing it at all. "Oh right.. The coming Feasts..." I muttered out to myself. That's right, today we're supposed to have the Feast of Immaculate Conception, and put up whatever decoration we need in preparation for Christmas. I turn to see the Christmas tree I slaved to decorate this morning, as it glowed under the winter sun. I can't help but smile, feeling rewarded for the accomplishment alone.

And then there's the Feast of the Saint Lucy, as well as the Feast of the Seven Fish on Christmas Eve, though I doubt I'll actually have anything of a feast on those days. Looking around, the whole mansion looked empty, deprived of its usual hustle and bustle of Mafia activities.

"Sigh..." I gave out a long, heavy sigh as I realized how undecorated the house looks in comparison to the tree, as well as the large amount of decorations scattered all over the floor. "This is going to be a long day..." I whined to myself, feeling slightly dejected.

Now you might be wondering why the Boss of a Mafiaso Famiglia might be putting up stuff all alone under the cold, winter wind, but that's probably my fault. I asked the members to go spend time with their families, I even had to kick some of the more unwilling ones out of the mansion myself. I don't know if this is the right thing to do, or the safest, but I just don't want them to regret not spending time with their families. Considering our activities everyday, you never know what might happen...

"Even Kiera's gone... I should probably get back on it.." I reminded myself, struggling around. Except I can't. All this while, I was hanging there, by a thin, Christmas decor. It was what I got when I tried to use my Awakening to speed things up. Halfway through the leap from one side of the house to another, Fenris slipped from my fingers from the cold, knocking me out of my Awakening almost immediately. I guess it was quite the luck that a string of decor caught me by my leg. I think he's still somewhere on the roof... I hope.

The piece of decor hanged me by my leg, and I realized I'll probably die if I hung up there all day, so I thought I'd take my chance falling and struggled to untie the knot. "Uh.. Urgh.." Strange, it's pretty tight considering how it thin it was...

Another gust of winter wind sent another wave of shivers down my spine. "Uuhh..." I gave out uncontrollably, in-between my shivers. The longer I spent outside in the cold, the more familiar I felt. Memories started surfacing in my mind, memories I thought I had forgotten.

It was the same scenery, the same garden, all except it was covered by a blanket of white. I remember standing out in the cold, all snug and tucked in my coat and mittens, and being fascinated by the flakes of snow. I think I was five. With snow being so rare, I was so excited about playing in the field of white that I even forgot about how much I hated the cold. I even remember the feeling of pushing my boots through the cold, white snow for the first time ever, smiling and laughing as I did.

"H-hey, Amato, wait up!" That's it, there's that voice again! In the distance, a man walked behind me. A mountain of Christmas decorations in his hands, his face was blocked from my view., but I knew who he was. he was my Dad.

Soon, we got to doing what we intended to do, which was to hang up the Christmas decorations by the end of the day, just like today! The memory of my Dad's face was still fuzzy. I only caught sight of streaks of brown hair, just like mine, short and neat.

"Snowball fight! Snowball fight!" It wasn't long before my five-year old self got bored and cried out for something more, waving a snowball in my hands. By then, the Christmas tree standing in the garden was all sparkles and color. Dad was already putting up the decorations on the house.

"Please, Amato, we're late as it is... With Uncle Gerald gone, we'll need to hang these all over the mansion ourselves!" He explained, his eyes darting place to place as his movments quickened.

Of course, as with any five-year old, boring stuff turned me off. Ignoring Dad's words, I threw the snowball in my hand right at him.

"Bish!"

"Ugh.." I saw Dad shiver as the ice hit his head, shaking his head to flick away the snowflakes. As rude and naughty as it was, I didn't realize it, and started running around, screaming and laughing, making snowballs and snow angels all around. Dad was left to do all the decorations himself, and of course, soon he got really, really annoyed by my playing. "Grr... Would you just shut up and stop playing, Amato!" Dad finally snapped, and yelled at me in anger for the first time ever.

Of course, I stopped. Slowly I made my way to his side. "Sniff.." Tears started forming in my eyes, but I held it back because I knew it was my fault. For the first time, I was afraid of Dad. "I'm sorry, Daddy.." I whispered, my voice shaking.

"Sigh... No, I'm sorry.." I lightened up and my shivering stopped when I saw how much Dad regretted what he said. "..It's just.. your Mom used to do all these.. she used to have everything ready so easily, so perfectly.. but now.." Dad stopped talking after that, and I think I realized what he meant, as young as I was. Fuzzy as his face was, I could see his tears slowly flowing. I started helping out, putting up the decorations when Dad's hands stopped. In the end, we managed to finish putting everything up just as the sun started to set.

Thinking back, I never knew that piece of memory would be something I would remember so fondly, as well as how much I would missed him lecturing me..

"Um.. Amato?" A voice I never expected to hear called out to me from the gates. Turning around, I could see an upside-down image of two people standing by the gates. A pink, fluffy coat over her body, Gina stood by the gate with brown mittens and a purple scarf. Her hands clinging on to the metal bars, she had a concerned look in her eyes. Standing beside her was Sergio, wearing a thin, long sleeved white jacket, as well as matching pants, with thick, leather gloves. Confused, he had his head tilted slightly to the right.

"Are you okay...?" Gina asked once more, her voice meek in the cold.

"Y-yeah, the gate's opened.." I replied, struggling hard to release the knot that was leaving me hanging. Alas, it was no use. I had to hang upside-down, embarrassed as I watched the two walked towards me.

"Hmm, do you need help?" Sergio asked out. From his tone of voice, I couldn't actually tell if he was being sarcastic or concerned, so I chose to believe in the latter. As they stopped directly below me, I realized how much danger I'm actually in, hanging two stories above them. The sight of my predicament was enough for Gina to give out a chuckle, and I felt strangely happy when I heard it. As they looked up at me, they suddenly took a huge step back.

"H-huh?" I couldn't help but ask out. As I turned around, a figure had the sun partly covered, the shadow casted over me. He stood at the edge of the rooftop, his familiar rifle at his side. It was Dante. With a flick, he tossed something my way. Catching it reflexively, I saw the cold, metallic object land in my hand. Fenris glistened in the sun, with some ice forming at the edges.

"Fenris!"

So after finishing dusting myself from the crash, Sergio and Gina decided to help out with the decorations. When I asked why they were outside my house, and what about their own decorations, they said they were done iby noon, and they decided to come visit my mansion. Even Dante helped out, in his own quiet way. His actions reminded me of a lone wolf, hunting on its own. But, everytime he got close, I would see Sergio and Gina tense up, especially at the sight of his rifle.

"Sigh..." I guess it'll take some more time to build that trust... I hope. The thought floated through my mind as I hung up more decorations on the windows. I know, most people won't ever be friends with his own killer. I'm just so different, huh! It took me a few seconds to notice Gina glancing towards me every few seconds. Everytime she did, I looked away.

Finally, we were left with just the gates. Picking up a bell, I prepared to hang it at the highest point, when I felt a tug to my coat followed by a voice.

"Why are you avoiding me?" Gina asks out with a hint of sadness in her voice. She looked upset and worried, constantly fiddling with her mittens.

It was difficult to look at her so upset, and worse that I am the one who's causing it. "Well... you're together... with Johann.. right?" I muttered the words one by one, shifting my eyes away once more. As much as Iiked her, I guess in my mind I've already decided to just let things take its course. If she likes Johann, I should be more supportive. Gina's expression changed from one of being upset, to one of anger and annoyance. Her eyes furrowed and a red hue appeared on her face.

"Can't friends just hang out together! What's wrong with just a guy and a girl spending time together! As friends!" Gina screamed out, her words so loud I couldn't hear anything properly for a few seconds after that. "And if you didn't notice, he's hit by his amnesia again! He's forgotten everything!" Gina finally stopped, calming herself down. I just stood there, unable to say anything. What was I suposed to say? Even when I thought I was doing the correct thing, I'm hurting Gina like this. I think Sergio noticed us, but decided not to cut into our conversation.

"Sigh... I like you, Amato Zanna. That's why I'll always help you like this. That's why I'll always wanna hang out with you." Gina stood there as she confessed, rocking back and and forth as she stood. She looked angry and embarrassed at the same time. Her deep, purple scarf flew with the wind as she closed her eyes. ".. I just want our relationship to be normal, for things to go naturally..." her voice quiet down as she trotted back to the decorations.

I stood there stunned, not knowing what to do. I felt warm, my vision a bit blurry from what Gina said. But, the scene where Gina agreed when her firends called me a loser lingered in my mind, making unsure of what to believe in. The wind blew stronger and colder, but I barely felt it.

"Sigh.." Now it was my turn to sigh, as I walked back dejectedly. A lot of things were going through my mind, but I knew one thing for certain...

"I still have a lot to learn..."

Well, that was long for a slice-of-life chapter! I can't say I didn't enjoy writing it though. I hope the effort to make it feel natural can be felt! New things are abound, and I'm really excited to bring it to you guys! Keep your eyes out for the next chapter!